Shadowy Secret
by Darkest Light
Summary: Kenshin's dark past is coming back to haunt him and it will endanger the others, including Kaoru.
1. Default Chapter

disclaimer: RK doesn't belong to me

~*~*~Prologue~*~*~

The Battousai looked at the inn with narrowed eyes. He could see that that place was not going to very appealing to him. If he didn't have a job to do, he wouldn't be spending his time here where attention would be drawn to him. "Himura, let's go inside and drink some sake."

He didn't answer at all. Kenshin Himura entered the inn without a word to any of his companions. As the others drank sake and laughed at each others' lame jokes, he sat in the corner of the room, watching the scene without any facial expressions. Kenshin had his sword in his right hand, concentrating on the sounds outside the inn. He had a feeling that someone was watching and waiting outside for some sort of right time. This was the reason why he didn't drink in the first place. If he drank, his senses would be dulled. That would leave his defenses down; a dangerous thing to do at times like these.

As the others fell into a deep sleep on the wooden table top, Kenshin got up from the position he had been sitting in and started to move towards the doors. He tightened his grip around the hilt of the sword and then drew it out as men and women wearing black clothing and masked leapt at him. "The Battousai must die!"

Kenshin used his reflexes to dodge their swords and then as they slowed down in surprise at his skills he took his advantage. He used his speed and his skills to kill them. Within minutes, about twenty people lay dead or fatally wounded. One woman spat at him. "You will pay for all of the people that you have killed. Our master is still out there and he will destroy you and those you care about when he feels that it is the right time."

He turned his head away as the woman's head fell back, no strength left to keep it up. Kenshin looked at the blood on his blade and then at the bodies that lay a few feet away. He said to the dying woman, "Your threat is meaningless to me."

Kenshin knew that he would never have a family. This was his work and he was not going to settle down anytime soon. His life had little meaning to him. The woman's threat meant nothing to him. There were many who wanted him dead. He had managed to kill them all before they had managed to kill him. There was no point in worrying about the master of this plan. Had the man been skillful, he would have managed to train his warriors better. The woman said in a shaky voice, "The Fuji Clan will have their vengeance against you, Battousai. Just you watch."

"I'll be here to watch. But I'm certain that you won't be there to watch it happen," Kenshin said in a cold voice that would have sent shivers down anyone's spine.

He turned and walked away, leaving behind the mess that he had created without even a little remorse.


	2. Battousai's Revival

~*~*~Chapter 1: Battousai's Revival~*~*~

Kenshin jerked awake and then found that his senses were sharply tuned to the unfamiliar footsteps outside in the hall. He looked at the shadow cast upon the sliding door and quickly reached for his sword, which was on the table next to him. There was an intruder in the house. Quickly, he made his way to the door, but then to his horror, he heard Kaoru's voice. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"  
He flung the door open and stared with amazement as Kaoru held the wooden sword she practiced with in front of her against a man with a sharp sword. "Kaoru-dono, move aside."

Kenshin tightened his hands around the hilt of his sword as the man lunged at Kaoru. He blocked the blow from her and growled, "Who are you?"  
"So the Battousai really does live in the Kamiya dojo. We'll see how long that will last. The promise will be fulfilled, Battousai."

He frowned as he stepped in front of Kaoru, trying to keep her safe. "What are you talking about? Who are you?"

"I am sent by the Fuji Clan to destroy the Battousai and fulfill the promise made all those years ago," the man said and then leapt into the air, onto the roof.

Kenshin was about to follow, but Kaoru held him by the arm. Her eyes were wide with worry as she said in a soft voice, "Kenshin, what is going on? He tried to kill you!"

He amazed at how Kaoru couldn't accept the fact that there was people out there who wanted to kill him because he was the Hitokiri Battousai. "They will be after you too."

Kenshin tried to pull away but she didn't loosen her grip on him. Kaoru looked at him for a few moments and then said in a quiet voice, "I want to know what's going on. You know what he's talking about, don't you?"

He averted his gaze elsewhere, but Kaoru was as persistent as ever and wouldn't let it go. "Kenshin, don't you think you owe it to the others and me?"

"Owe what?" he said in a hard cold edged voice. "What do you think I owe you and the others, Kaoru?"

He gripped her arms hard until she cried out in pain. Kaoru's eyes widened in fear as she whispered, "The Battousai..."

Kenshin quickly loosened his grip on her and looked away shamefully. He had lost control over his inner demons, over his past self. The Assassin that he once was was beginning to surface again. "Kaoru-dono...."

"Don't. Don't apologize, Kenshin. It was just a moment of... You didn't hurt me. I was just...surprised. Your eyes were golden..."

"Yes. The change happens when I have to fight. When I have to engage in battle. Kaoru-dono, I can't stay here any longer."

He turned to leave. Kaoru dashed in front of him and stopped him. Her hands were on her hip as she said, "I'm not going to let you go until you fix this mess you got us into."

She raised her head in defiance. Kenshin frowned and said, "If I don't go, they will come after everyone here."

She shrugged and said, "It's too late. They're already after us. The Fuji Clan knows that you were here. They know that you have people you care about here. If you leave now, wouldn't you put us into danger? You're the only one who knows their tactics."

Kenshin studied her for a minute and then said, "Fine. Go check on Yahiko, Kaoru-dono. With all this commotion, he should have come out to check."

Kaoru shook her head and said, "Don't worry about that little brat. Sano spent the time you were out teaching Yahiko how to drink _sake_."

"_Sake_?! Yahiko is only thirteen years old. He shouldn't be allowed to drink," Kenshin said with shock. 

She smiled and said, "If you try it young and hate it, you're not likely to try it again when you grow older. Look on the bright side. He's not going to be a drinker like Sano when he grows up."

Kenshin relaxed a little bit and then looked at the area where the intruder had been last seen. "Let's go inside before we actually talk. I want to know why you came out here."

"Um, if I said that I was thirsty, would you believe me?" Kaoru asked as she sat down on the little deck. "You wouldn't, would you?"

He leaned against the wooden post and said, "No, I wouldn't. You were out there before I even sensed him. That means that you were out there before he came."

Kaoru shrugged and said, "I suppose I was. I was there before he arrived. I couldn't sleep. Not with all those..."

She paused and then said with a frown, "You had another memory, didn't you? I don't understand why all of a sudden. You've been dreaming for the past few months now."

Kenshin shrugged and said, "They come and go as they please. I have no control over them. I never did."

She looked at him quizzically and then she said, "You have become the Battousai more often than before. Did you know that?"

Kenshin turned to look at her with confusion. "What are you talking? The Hitokiri Battousai hasn't made and appearance for a long time now."

Kaoru shrugged and said, "Say what you like but I personally think that it doesn't matter anymore. You can't separate yourself into two different people. Your past is still a part of you. No matter what you may think, the Rurouni and the Battousai is the same person. The Battousai is your past and you have to accept that. I can't say that I understand what you're going through, but if you continue to suppress the warrior side on you, you may lose complete control."

She stood up and then started to head towards the kitchen. Kenshin was still processing what she had just said through his head when he realized what she was planning to do. "Kaoru-dono, what are you doing?"

Giving him a smile, she said, "What does it look like to you? I'm going to go cook breakfast, of course."

Kenshin suddenly began to sweat. There was nothing worst than her cooking. She could probably kill someone with the food she conjured up in the kitchen. "Uh, perhaps, I should do that. You go and rest. I can make breakfast."

"Nope. I'm going to do the cooking today," Kaoru said with an amused look on her face. "Why? What's the matter? Is my cooking that bad?"

Kenshin didn't answer but let her go with a sigh. He followed her to the kitchen and watched as she carefully chopped vegetables up neatly for soup. "What are you doing?"

Kaoru raised an eyebrow and said, "I'm cooking. What else does it look like? I know. I know. We don't usually eat soup in the morning, but indulge me this once, okay? I want to try this out once. If it's that bad, I won't do it again."

He studied her style with sudden interest. She changed her style of cooking. This wasn't how she usually did it. "Did you take cooking lessons?"

She smiled proudly as she said, "Yup. You guys weren't being honest about my cooking, but I know how it really tastes. I went and asked an expert to teach me."

Kenshin watched in silence as she prepared the meal. His thoughts were in turmoil. Kaoru's words had awakened him and now, he knew that it was probably the Battousai who would be able to stop the Fuji Clan, not the Rurouni. Kenshin reflected upon this sudden conclusion. Was this a good thing to do? Should he really let the Battousai loose? "Kenshin?"

He broke away from his thoughts and then focused on Kaoru who was staring at him with amazement. "How did you do that?"

Kenshin frowned and said, "Do what? Why are you looking at me like that? Kaoru-dono? What are you....?"

Yahiko burst into the kitchen and cried out, "My head hurts! My head hurts. Make it stop hurting!"

Kenshin laughed and said, "Perhaps you shouldn't have drunk so much _sake_ in the first place. Like Kaoru-dono said."

"Hey! How was I supposed to know that she was actually right for once? I didn't know she actually had some experiences."

Kaoru shook her head disapprovingly before she responded, "Any idiot would be able to realize that. It's common sense."

Sano came running in and said, "Hey, is breakfast ready yet? I'm hungry. Haven't had breakfast yet."

Kaoru sighed and rolled her eyes before she began to bring out breakfast. Sano started to eat. "Hey, Kenshin, this soup is really good."

Kenshin shook his head and said, "Kaoru-dono, made it. I didn't do a thing this morning. Not after what happened last night."

Sano leaned forward and said, "What happened last night? You both look like you've seen the end of the world. Kenshin, you look as if you're about to kill someone."

Kenshin tightened his hand around his sword and Sano leaned back, raising his hands up as though in surrender. "I only asked a question. I didn't mean to actually have you kill me."

Kenshin felt his anger getting out of control. The Battousai was making his return, whether or not Kenshin actually wanted him to. The others watched on in amazement as Kenshin's eyes turned golden, the eyes of the Battousai.

Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I decided that since this is my first moth, I'll update it a little more often. Just try to expect an update every month or so. You could also try my original at www.fictionpress.net. It's the same pen name. Until next time! ~Darkest Light

terms~

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sake~ Japanese wine

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dono~ polite way of saying Miss or Ms or Mr.

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Hitokiri Battousai~ the Assassin

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dojo~ practice hall or training hall


End file.
